The best comic book covers of the week – 30 March 2020

Posted on March 30, 2020

3 min read

As long as there have been comic books, there have always been animated adaptations that have hit the small screen. You probably grew up on a few of them back in the day: If you’re old as sin, you may remember classic Jack Kirby art being reused in a weird way for various Marvel cartoons or that ancient Spider-Man series that gave rise to a catchy jingle.

Batman has had multiple times to shine, Superman’s animated series is the stuff of legend and Justice League Unlimited gave lesser-known DC characters their own moment in the spotlight during some of the best episodes of that three-series run. So why did Daredevil never get a cartoon series? If Spider-Man and his amazing pals could hog the limelight, what was stopping ol’ hornhead from dispensing some animated justice in HIFL’s Kitchen? Answer: Frank Miller. Or to be more precise, one of his comic book covers.

Way back in the early 1980s, the ABC network actually did want to make a Daredevil animated series, that would have seen Matt Murdock fight crime alongside his trusty seeing eye German Shepherd dog and sidekick Lightning. Listen, if Batman had to share the screen with fifth-dimensional imp Bat-Mite, then Daredevil got off lucky by only having a wacky dog tailing his every move. I wonder if Frank Welker was going to voice Lightning?

We’ll never know, because ABC and rival network NBC passed on the pitch. The reason why? Artist and writer Frank Miller’s cover to Daredevil #184:

According to Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort, that cover pretty much killed the cartoon pitch (cheers Newsarama):

Bought them all. That Daredevil cover killed an ABC cartoon pitch. https://t.co/zdSyVuciGM
— Tom Brevoort (@TomBrevoort) March 25, 2020

Brevoort did update his original tweet, with a few storyboards that were drawn for the cartoon by none other than John Romita Sr.:

Since people have expressed an interest in it, here are two presentation boards from the Daredevil cartoon proposal from 1982 that Frank Miller’s cover put the kibosh on. pic.twitter.com/F1RGFzjTEa
— Tom Brevoort (@TomBrevoort) March 26, 2020

What a shame. Daredevil did have a few television appearances after that failed pitch though! In 1983, he had his first television appearance in a 1983 episode of Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends, went live-action in 1989’s Trial of the Incredible Hulk, had a proper guest spot in a 1994 episode of The Fantastic Four and gave Spider-Man a run for his money in a 1996 episode of the webhead’s own animated series. Fox took a gamble on creating a new Daredevil series in 1999, but once again that project was doomed before it began.

Oh well, at least we got that fantastic 2003 film (I know Kervyn is going to be spurting his coffee all over his screen when he reads that line) and the brilliant Netflix show. Now, on to the best comic book covers of the week!